One of the wonderful aspects of the OCEAN CITIZEN project is the organization of campaigns that allow researchers from different technical and scientific backgrounds and nationalities to work together on the same boat. The first Ocean Citizen campaign was held in Tenerife (Canary Islands, Spain) as part of Work Package 2.
In April 2023, four months from the beginning of the project, several research groups started their activity in Tenerife (Canary Islands, Spain). From the Alfred Wegener Institute, Dr. Havermans collected sediments and water to assess biodiversity through eDNA analysis. Different suspension feeding populations were also approached by the team of Università di Bologna (CONISMA, Dr. Costantini) to understand their presence and distribution, but also its potential connectivity through DNA analysis. Presence of macroalgae was also explored by the joined group of Università di Genova and Università di Trieste (Dr. Kipston was present in Tenerife). From the CSIC-CEAB, Dr. Ribes and Dr. Coma made a survey of the gorgonian populations in Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, to select the potential organisms for the thermotolerance experiments. UGI supported the expedition by coordinating with diving centres and assisting in the sampling actions, while documenting the process.
